About KTP

The Knowledge Transfer Partnership programme is an established scheme that’s been around for almost 40 years, launched in 1975 as the Teaching Companies Scheme (TCS). In 2003 the scheme was re-branded as Knowledge Transfer Partnerships and is currently managed by Innovate UK.

Partnership structure

There are three principal players within a KTP:

Company partner - A company or organisation of all sizes, sectors and industries (including non-for-profit) who requires knowledge on a business need

Knowledge-base partner - A higher education institution (e.g. university ), college or research organisation (public or privately funded) who supplies the required knowledge

KTP Associate(s) – A graduate or postgraduate who manages the project, transferring the knowledge from the university to the company

Purpose and Aims

To facilitate the transfer of academic knowledge to real life business projects

To increase the interaction between businesses and academia

To raise awareness of the contribution academia can make to business development and growth

To provide company-based training for graduates to enhance their business and specialist skills